Real Fix for iTunes Restore Error Occurred While Reading from or Writing to the iPhone

Most of us rely on iTunes to restore or update their iPhone, iPad or iPod. But, iTunes is a complicated program to operate and we may encounter some error message like iTunes could not restore the iPhone because an error occurred while reading from or writing to the iPhone. Thus, if you’re going through this same error, then you’ve come to the right place. In this post, we’re going to walk you through how to address and fix the iPhone restore error while writing or reading problem.

Part 1: About Error “iTunes Could Not Restore Because An Error Occurred While Reading from or Writing to the iPhone”

We can understand the frustration and pain you experience when you’re trying to restore your iPhone from a backup in iTunes, but unexpectedly iTunes could not restore because an error occurred while reading from or writing to the iPhone. The error signifies that there’s an issue while accessing the iPhone and writing data to it.

an error occured
an error occured while reading/writing

If you think that it’s a problem due to the device being locked or something like a password that has to be entered, then there’s no such thing. When you encounter this error during your iPhone restore, it is generally because of low disk space. So, continue reading the post to get the error fixed.

Part 2: How to Fix “An Error Occurred While Reading Writing To The iPhone” On iTunes?

As we mentioned before, the main culprit behind this error is low disk space. So, the solution to fix iPhone restore error reading or writing is to clear up space on your computer.

The first concern that you should have is how much disk space is required to restore your iPhone. Well, the simple answer is if the size of your backup is 6 GB, then you should have 7 GB of free space on your disk. One place where you can go to get rid of files and make some room is the MobileSync folder, which iTunes created.

Here, we recommend you using dates to figure out which folder is the backup that you would like to restore from. It’s a smart thing to transfer other folders to somewhere else like an external hard drive or cloud storage if you’re worried you haven’t determined the right backup folder.

Below is the step-by-step guide on how to fix the problem by clearing up space on your computer:

Step 1: First, go to the MobileSync folder on your computer.

  • MobileSync on Windows 10: C:\Users\fatiw\Apple\MobileSync\Backup
  • MobileSync on Mac: ~/Library/Application Support/Mobile Sync/Backup

Step 2: In the below figure, the folder that was created on 20 September 2018 at 10:33 PM is the backup folder that the iOS device is going to use for restoration. And so, delete all other folders.

free disk space
free disk space

Step 3: Now, connect your iOS device to the computer and then begin the restore process. Make sure to observe this same folder and you’ll see that there will be a creation of another folder here during the process. Let it go through the process and don’t delete or move the new folder until your device is working again.

Step 4: After your iPhone has been restored, you can remove the folder with no backup.

That’s how you can fix iTunes could not restore iPhone because an error occurred while reading from or writing to the iPhone.

Part 3. Alternative Method to Restore iPhone backup without iTunes

As you can now see that restoring an iPhone backup in iTunes could result in annoying issues and errors. That’s why looking for an alternative method to restore iPhone backup without iTunes seems understandable. And iOS Data Manager is the best alternative to iTunes for restoring iPhone backup. This tool comes with free backup feature and even supports to restore from backup without iTunes. On top of all, you can even preview files and restore them selectively.

Below is the step-by-step guide on how to restore iPhone backup without iTunes using UltFone iOS Data Manager:

  • Step 1First, download and install the UltFone iOS Data Manager from its official site on your computer.

  • Step 2Run the software and connect your iPhone to the computer. From the main interface of the software, click on the “Backup & Restore” tab and click on “To view or restore previous backup files” option on the left-bottom.

    backup and restore
    backup and restore
  • Step 3 Now, the software will display all backup files. Here, you can select the desired backup file you would like to restore and tap “View”.

    preview backup file
    preview backup file
  • Step 4The software will extract all data from the selected backup. You can even preview your files here. Finally, select the files you would like to restore and click the “Restore to Device/Export to Computer” button.

    restore filee
    restore file

Conclusion:

That’s how to fix iTunes could not restore the iPhone because an error occurred while reading from or writing. Freeing up space on your computer is the real fix to this problem. However, we recommend you try an alternative solution like iOS Data Manager to restore iPhone backup without iTunes. Indeed, this tool is an easy and quick way to backup and restore your iPhone, with additional advantages like previewing backup and restoring files selectively.

Manage Your iPhone The Way You Want
  • One click to backup iPhone to computer for free.
  • Selectively restore backup to iPhone/iPad.
  • Transfer files on iPhone/iPad/iPod to/from computer freely without limitation
  • One click to export photos to computer
ios data manager